President Dmitry Medvedev has appointed Russia’s Permanent Representative to NATO Dmitry Rogozin

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MOSCOW, December 26 (Itar-Tass) — President Dmitry Medvedev has appointed Russia’s Permanent Representative to NATO Dmitry Rogozin as deputy prime minister instead Sergei Ivanov who was transferred to the Kremlin to the post of the presidential administration chief. Rogozin will coordinate the development of the military-industrial complex.

Dmitry Medvedev met with Dmitry Rogozin in Gorki where he announced the decision, Rossiiskaya Gazeta reports. “I think that you have sufficient experience to manage this complicated sphere,” the president said. “You have gained it in recent years working as my permanent representative to the North Atlantic Alliance.” Dmitry Medvedev hopes that Rogozin will become for the defence industry an energetic and modern manager. By the way, in November Rogozin became head of the commission on defence and the defence industry at the non-governmental committee of Medvedev’s supporters, the newspaper notes.

“Rogozin should manage to iron out the differences between the defence ministry employees and the generals, because, on the one hand, we know of his patriotic views, and on the other - he has good connections in the West and the ability to impartially compare the quality of domestic products with that from overseas,” believes retired Colonel Anatoly Dergilev, quoted by RBC Daily. “I think Rogozin be able to straighten out those executives who are not quite patriotic towards their military-industrial complex,” member of the RF Public Chamber Alexander Kanshin said.

Member of the Presidium of the Public Council under the RF Ministry of Defence Igor Korotchenko told Nezavisimaya Gazeta that he considered the appointment of Rogozin as deputy prime minister on the defence industry complex a landmark phenomenon: “This is a signal which indicates that the political leadership of the country sees and understands the need for a strong defence-industrial complex as one of the guarantors of the country’s sovereignty and independence.” However, Deputy Director of the Institute of the USA and Canada Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences Pavel Zolotarev has a completely different opinion on the appointment of Rogozin. He believes that the appointment of Rogozin is politically motivated: “Rogozin is a pure politician, but by no means an expert in the military industry field.”